Craig B - Sous Chef

0.00.00 My name is Craig B and I’m the Sous Chef. The Head Chef has his roles, I’m next in line to that, so he basically looks after the more business side of it whereas I look after the day to day running of the kitchen itself which entails all the kitchen rotas, you know, ordering of food and basically running the kitchen itself, as well as doing my own cooking and everything like that as well.

0.00.30 My parents, like they, expectations and support, I mean the support was always there but there was never any sort of expectations, they were just supportive of what I was doing so it was sort of one of those ones they just let me do what I did. Family wise is I’ve got two Pastry Chefs as uncles and a cousin that’s a Pastry Chef as well, so it’s sort of the food all on the one side of the family. So it was actually, I went for a job straight after school and, in a pastry role, and the guy

0.01.00 there said “have you ever thought about going the next step and going into cheffing?”, cos he was actually looking at opening a restaurant himself and I, it sort of turned my over and that’s sort of where I started from there and I got into a full Chef doing everything instead. So it’s pretty much where I started. Here in the UK it’s a little bit different to what I’m used to, with the Australia system they do what they call an apprenticeship there so it’s a four year apprenticeship for, to learn your skills to become qualified.

0.01.30 And then from there you basically just climb the ladder to get to the positions. I’ve been in Head Chef roles in small hotels and have five or six staff to do the whole lot and things like that. But just going along the way, I just built myself up that way, yeah, to get into where I am. Basically just coming to the UK was to more or less just push who I am and what I want to do and try and, you know,

0.02.00 see the difference basically between Australia and the UK and how it works and get experience and that’s what it is, yeah. People wise, I mean there’s various sort of people that you look up to and aspire to be like in, you know, cooking or cheffing circles there’s some great English guys, a lot of great French guys, there’s a couple of Italian ones and a Spanish guy that I know that are really, really good, reading their cookbooks and things like that and going through.

0.02.30 I love going to butcher shops and seafood things and sort of looking at what’s there and seeing, you know, and that sort of thing actually inspires as well. Cook at home, yeah, I do cook at home and sometimes you do get home from work and you get there and you just think no. But the moment you open the fridge door and spot something you think yeah, that’s it, you start doing it. I love building and things like that so I, house renovations and

0.03.00 things like that. Being here in England I own a house in France and I go over and I’m renovating that so, yeah, I love doing things like that, just basic creative things with my hands. I love to travel as well so it’s one of those things when I do go to places itself, I love to pretty much, not so much follow the tourist sort of thing, I love to go to little local cafés and food and things like that. Ambitions for the future itself

0.03.30 would, I mean obviously to go from being a Sous Chef to a Head Chef in a good size hotel as well, like this one itself, yeah. So yeah that’s probably the next step. Always would love to have my own restaurant. That’s always the one thing that every Chef wants to do but you know that comes down to a question of money and time and everything else and it’ll get there. It will.

0.03.57

Craig B

Craig B
0.00.00 My name is Craig B and I’m the Sous Chef. The Head Chef has his roles, I’m next in line to that, so he basically looks after the more business side of it whereas I look after the day to day running of the kitchen itself which entails all the kitchen rotas, you know, ordering of food and basically running the kitchen itself, as well as doing my own cooking and everything like that as well.
0.00.30 My parents, like they, expectations and support, I mean the support was always there but there was never any sort of expectations, they were just supportive of what I was doing so it was sort of one of those ones they just let me do what I did. Family wise is I’ve got two Pastry Chefs as uncles and a cousin that’s a Pastry Chef as well, so it’s sort of the food all on the one side of the family. So it was actually, I went for a job straight after school and, in a pastry role, and the guy
0.01.00 there said “have you ever thought about going the next step and going into cheffing?”, cos he was actually looking at opening a restaurant himself and I, it sort of turned my over and that’s sort of where I started from there and I got into a full Chef doing everything instead. So it’s pretty much where I started. Here in the UK it’s a little bit different to what I’m used to, with the Australia system they do what they call an apprenticeship there so it’s a four year apprenticeship for, to learn your skills to become qualified.
0.01.30 And then from there you basically just climb the ladder to get to the positions. I’ve been in Head Chef roles in small hotels and have five or six staff to do the whole lot and things like that. But just going along the way, I just built myself up that way, yeah, to get into where I am. Basically just coming to the UK was to more or less just push who I am and what I want to do and try and, you know,
0.02.00 see the difference basically between Australia and the UK and how it works and get experience and that’s what it is, yeah. People wise, I mean there’s various sort of people that you look up to and aspire to be like in, you know, cooking or cheffing circles there’s some great English guys, a lot of great French guys, there’s a couple of Italian ones and a Spanish guy that I know that are really, really good, reading their cookbooks and things like that and going through.
0.02.30 I love going to butcher shops and seafood things and sort of looking at what’s there and seeing, you know, and that sort of thing actually inspires as well. Cook at home, yeah, I do cook at home and sometimes you do get home from work and you get there and you just think no. But the moment you open the fridge door and spot something you think yeah, that’s it, you start doing it. I love building and things like that so I, house renovations and
0.03.00 things like that. Being here in England I own a house in France and I go over and I’m renovating that so, yeah, I love doing things like that, just basic creative things with my hands. I love to travel as well so it’s one of those things when I do go to places itself, I love to pretty much, not so much follow the tourist sort of thing, I love to go to little local cafés and food and things like that. Ambitions for the future itself
0.03.30 would, I mean obviously to go from being a Sous Chef to a Head Chef in a good size hotel as well, like this one itself, yeah. So yeah that’s probably the next step. Always would love to have my own restaurant. That’s always the one thing that every Chef wants to do but you know that comes down to a question of money and time and everything else and it’ll get there. It will.
0.03.57

Email to a friend

Bookmark

About Craig B

Age at filming: 36-45,
Employer's name: Intercontinental Hotels
Craig B is a Sous Chef for Intercontinental Hotel Group. There is a family tradition of becoming a pastry chef, and he left school to do that, but his employer persuaded him to train as a "full chef doing everything."

Description

Chefs plan menus and prepare, or oversee the preparation of food in hotels, restaurants, clubs, private households and other establishments.

Qualifications

There are no formal academic requirements. Training is provided off- and on-the-job. NVQs/ SVQs, BTEC Certificates and Diplomas and foundation degrees are available. Apprenticeships leading to an NVQ/SVQ at Level 3 are also available. Courses are also run by private cookery schools.

Tasks

Requisitions or purchases and examines foodstuffs from suppliers to ensure quality

Plans menus, prepares, seasons and cooks foodstuffs or oversees their preparation and monitors the quality of finished dishes

Supervises, organises and instructs kitchen staff and manages the whole kitchen or an area of the kitchen

Ensures relevant hygiene and health and safety standards are maintained within the kitchen

Plans and co-ordinates kitchen work such as fetching, clearing and cleaning of equipment and utensils.